


It's Not a Place

by deliciousshame



Series: AoKuro Week 2016 [3]
Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: AoKuro Week, AoKuro Week 2016, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-13
Updated: 2016-05-13
Packaged: 2018-06-08 06:29:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6842833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deliciousshame/pseuds/deliciousshame
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Daiki ends up sharing his place with an unwanted roommate. Well, maybe not so unwanted.</p>
            </blockquote>





	It's Not a Place

“Oh, hello Aomine-kun. You’re finally here. Your room is that one. Please help me put the dishes in the cupboards when you’re done with your things.”

Wait. What. “Tetsu?”

“Yes?”

“What are you doing in my place?” With boxes of stuff, plates in your hands and a dog running around, wow that looks like a bad idea, the dog will break the dishes. 

Tetsu just stares at him. “It’s my apartment too.”

Not it’s not. “No it’s not.”

Tetsu sighs. “Yes it is. Didn’t you talk with Momoi-san at all?”

“I never want to talk to Satsuki. What’s this about?”

“She didn’t think you’d survive by yourself, so we decided I’d take up Momoi-san’s torch and become your caretaker during college. Quite frankly, you’re not exactly proving her wrong right now, not even knowing about your roommate.”

Those assholes! “This place is way too small for two people!”

Tetsu shrugs. “I don’t take much space. We’ll make it work.”

“Are dogs even allowed here.”

“Of course they are, we checked before renting.”

He could continue on (seriously, what the hell, how about calling him before, or not picking dishes this ugly if they’re going to share them?), but Tetsu is putting his stubborn face on, and there’s no winning against him if he decides he’s not gonna lose that argument, so he just gives up. 

It’s not like he minds, really. 

___________________________

“For fucks’s sake, this apartment is even shittier than the last, why are you still there?” Daiki’s not dumb, okay? He knows he’s not exactly great roommate material. He’s shitty at remembering to do chores, and even when he does it’s not done half as well as when Tetsu takes care of it. Tetsu _is_ great roommate material. He’s the most unobtrusive person ever, he doesn’t eat much and always pays his share of the bills in time. 

“The rent is cheaper when you share it, it’s closer to the university, which was the point of moving in the first place, and you’ll die by yourself.”

Seriously. Hours of commuting every day was bad. “Wow, I can feel the love. You could always move with Kagami or something. His place is ridiculously huge and he can cook.” He bets the jerk has a housekeeper and like, an unlimited supply of hot water and heating. Fuck that guy.

“Kagami-kun doesn’t need a roommate. He’s rich.” And yeah, even Tetsu’s annoyed by that. 

“You could move by yourself or, I don’t know, with one of your college buddies.” 

Tetsu stares at him. “Aomine-kun, do you really want me to move? Momoi-san will have to come by at least once a week to make sure you’re still alive and didn’t set the neighbors’ cat on fire.”

“That’s not what happened! It was its fault anyway, why the fuck did it sneak into our place… But no, you can stay. I just don’t get it.”

Tetsu… is petting the top of his head. “Don’t worry your pretty little head about it.”

Daiki bats him away. “The fuck! Stop it!”

___________________________

There’s something wrong lately, and Daiki’s not really sure what it is. Tetsu isn’t feeling right. He’s been distant. Daiki has been willing to give him the time to deal with whatever it is like a grown ass man, but it’s been at least a few days and he’s tired of this shit. “What is it.”

Tetsu half turns toward him, obviously not giving him his full attention. “What do you mean?”

“C’mon, you’ve been thinking about something for a while. Tell me about it.”

Tetsu looks surprised. “I had no idea you noticed.”

“Wow, rude. I have eyes just like everyone else.” Hello, Daiki is not dumb or blind, thank you very much. 

“Don’t worry about it. It’s not your problem.”

Daiki knows that too. “Yeah, okay, I’ll just go over there and pretend the whole conversation never happened. Yeah, no. Let’s just get that over with. C’mon, spill it out.”

Tetsu stares at him, sighs and shrugs. “My grandmother is sick. My mother wants me to come back home and help taking care of her. Apparently they both worry about me and they’d feel better with me around.”

Shit. That’s not good. Tetsu loves his grandma. “Oh. Sorry about your grandma.”

“Thank you.”

Daiki’s got to be a responsible adult about this. He knows Tetsu thinks he can barely boil water without destroying the kitchen and endangering pets, but he’s wrong. “You can go, no problem. I’ll be fine. I’ll have to be. It’s not like we’ll spend all our life together. We’re gonna graduate this year anyway. I have to do shit by myself and you have to let me do it.” It’s not something he enjoys thinking about, because he’s gotten used to having Tetsu there at all time, but, you know, adults. He’s gonna get a job someday, and so will Tetsu, and they’ll have to move again, but not together this time. Maybe acknowledging it out loud will help him accept the cold, hard truth. 

From the face he’s making, Tetsu is as pleased with that realisation as he is. “Oh. I’ll take that into consideration then.”

___________________________

Tetsu goes home a few days later, taking most of his personal belongings with him but leaving behind pretty much all the rest. 

Really living alone for the first time of his life is a bit strange at first. Daiki isn’t that much of a people person anyway, so he doesn’t really mind the silence and the constant alone times. It’s not that different from when Tetsu was here, except in all the ways it is. Suddenly having to do all the things by himself is a pain and more time consuming than he thought he would. He also sleeps through a few lectures, but no one has to know about that. He’ll settle back into normalcy after a while. 

Tetsu’s grandma isn’t doing so good. She doesn’t have much time left, Tetsu said, and the house is filled with people trying to accommodate her in her final hours while trying to act like nothing unusual is happening. He says it’s suffocating, and it must really be if Tetsu is not only admitting it but complaining to him about it. 

Daiki thinks it would be easier on them both if Tetsu were here, if he could just reach for him and, he doesn’t know, pull him to his side or something. Show him he’s here for him, that kind of girly stuff. 

But he’s not here. 

___________________________

“Grandmother is dead.”

So that’s why Tetsu is standing in their doorway, the cheery sunshine behind him contrasting with how closed off he looks, even for him. “Oh, sorry for your loss. “

The silence stretches. “Don’t just stand there, come in.”

Daiki shoves Tetsu on the sofa and goes to make tea. It’s both awkward to act like Tetsu is a guest and to try and deal with a grieving person. Daiki has no experience, in, well, either really. He doesn’t do entertaining guests, but Tetsu isn’t a guest, not really, and tea might help. 

He comes back with a cup and deliberately sits as close as he can to Tetsu, which isn’t that hard considering how cramped their small two seater sofa is. It’s a bit harder to make sure nothing spills on them, but it’s worth the hassle. Anyway, Tetsu shuffles even closer, so it was the right move. 

“Aomine-kun, do you think I could stay here for a while? Home is… uncomfortable right now.”

“Hey, you still have your name on the lease, you can do whatever you want. It’s still your home, if you want it to.” It’s not Daiki’s business how Tetsu’s mother will take it. Daiki only cares about her son. 

“Thank you."

“It’s nothing. How are you doing?” Maybe he shouldn’t be asking that, but he wants to have an idea of where Tetsu stands at the moment.

“I’m already feeling better. It’s always better when I’m here.” Tetsu is sitting rod straight, but his hand is grasping at the end of Daiki’s shirt, playing with the fabric without looking at him. He looks so fragile, Daiki wants to protect him from the whole world. He’d lock all the doors and it would be just the two of them together in their small, shitty apartment. Fuck what the rest of the world thinks. Daiki wraps an arm around Tetsu, pushes him against his side and catches Tetsu’s hand in his, trying to calm it down, to stifle the tremors that shake it. “Good. It’s the same for me."

Tetsu snuggles a bit closer. He doesn’t cry. He probably cried himself sick already.

They stay like that, unmoving, silent, until hunger reluctantly pushes Daiki off the sofa. Tetsu offers to help, Daiki shuts him down, they argue a little. It feels very normal. Normal is good. He suspects they both missed normal lately. 

___________________________

Tetsu didn’t bring his things with him. Daiki doesn’t know if it’s because he didn’t know he was coming back here or if it’s because he didn’t want to alert his mother. 

Daiki lends him one of his shirts for the night. He knows it’ll be too big for him, which should be comfortable for sleeping. Except that seeing Tetsu standing in their home, having eaten his food, wearing his clothes, smelling like him, it all does things to him. Maybe it’s time to admit that the idea of Tetsu leaving again makes him queasy, and that this level of attachment isn’t normal when the subject of it is only supposed to be your friend. 

“Aomine-kun, could I…” and he trails off. 

There are very few things Daiki wouldn’t allow at the moment. “C’mon, what is it?”

“Do you think I could… I don’t want to be alone tonight.”

From anyone else, anywhere else, that would be incredibly obvious innuendo. Here and now, Daiki can see Tetsu trembling and knows the declaration as the admission of weakness Tetsu sees it as. So he tells himself to be a grown up and deal with it, and says “Sure. Wake me up if I take too much space, I tend to sprawl.” 

Tetsu’s eyes visibly widen as he takes in the answer he obviously hadn’t expected to get. “Yes” is what he says, even if they both know he’ll never do it. 

So they go to bed, and Daiki doesn’t even give Tetsu the chance of pretending he’ll be fine on the other side of the bed, trying to take as little place as humanly possible. He wraps himself all over him and holds him against his chest until sleep takes them both. 

___________________________

Waking up the morning after is confusing, and for a few horrifying seconds Daiki thinks he took advantage of Tetsu’s distressed state, but the truth comes back to him quickly. Tetsu had been feeling sad and alone, and he’d tried to be there for him. Since he’s still sleeping, Daiki writes it off as a success and decides not to move until Tetsu wakes up. He knows it’s a great sacrifice to make, but he’ll do it in the name of… let’s say friendship. 

It’s more than forty-five minutes later when Tetsu opens his eyes, meets his, blinks confusedly and blushes really prettily. Daiki’s heart is not prepared for the sight, okay? It’s totally unfair. “Aomine-kun. I’m sorry to have been such a bother. I wasn’t myself yesterday.”

Yeah right. Like Daiki is gonna let him apologise for being human and sad. “You haven’t been a bother at all, idiot. I missed you too. It was nice, being together again.”

Tetsu’s blush is darkening, damn it. Being this cute is cheating! How can he be mature and responsible under such provocation! 

“You don’t have to coddle me, Aomine-kun. I’m fine.”

“Maybe I want to. You deserve it. By the way, want me to go pick up your things?”

“…What?”

“Your things? You know, clothes and stuff, since you’re coming back here.”

“Oh, that. You don’t have to. As I said, I wasn’t myself yesterday, and you were right, we have to learn how to live apart, and you apparently did pretty well by yourself, so I don’t see why I-“

Daiki is an idiot. Why does he keep spoiling things for himself. “Forget about that. I was being stupid. I want you here. You want to be here.” Doubt crosses his mind. “You do, right? Want to be here, I mean.” With me. 

Tetsu doesn’t even hesitate. “Yes, but-“

“Then the rest doesn’t matter. You’re moving in. Back in. End of story.” 

“Aomine-kun, we can’t stay together forever.”

He’s not sulking. He’s not. “Why not?”

“…Aomine-kun, do you want to stay with me forever? Don’t you want a family someday?”

Daiki shrugs. “Not really. You’d do just fine. We can always adopt, if you want one.”

“…You’re getting quite ahead of yourself here.”

“Whatever, we’ll see when it happens.”

“We’re not even dating.”

“Isn’t that a formality at this point? You just admitted you wanted to live with me and not your family, shitty apartment included. I just admitted I wanted you to stay forever and you didn’t run for the hills. As far as I’m concerned, we’re pretty much married.”

“We never even kissed.”

Daiki wriggles his eyebrows. “Hey, if that’s a problem, it’s an easily solvable one."

Tetsu’s laughing. All in all, Daiki would say he’s doing pretty good. “Okay, fine, I’m staying here for the foreseeable future, but you have to come with me to tell my mother.”

Daiki knew this would happen. “Do I tell her you’re moving back in with me, or do I ask her for your hand in marriage?”

Blushing again. Stop it. “The first one will do just fine, thank you. We’ll talk to her about the second thing at a more appropriate time. Later. Much, much later.” 

“That means you’d said yes, right? Good, then we’re at least dating now.”

Tetsu sighs. Daiki is even happy to hear Tetsu sigh. That means he’s here, with him, home, again. “How annoying are you going to be about that?”

“Says the guy who moved in with me twice! Without even asking me the first time! You can’t do that kind of thing and not think a guy will get ideas! And if you keep blushing like that I’ll really kiss you!” Seriously. Not. fair.

“I never said you couldn’t."

Oh. Okay. Here it goes.


End file.
